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C. S. TAINTER. SPEED RBGULATGR.

190.416.969. Patented Deo. 10, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES S. TAINTER, OF IASHINGTON DISTRICT OFCOIIUMBIA.

SPEED-REGULATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 416,969, dated December 10, 1889.

Application filed October 8, 1887. Serial No. 251,817- (No model.)

To all wiz/0m it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES SUMNER 'IAINTER, a resident of Washington, n the District of Columbia, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Speed-Regulators, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specification.

This invention relates to the construction of a speed-iegulator or device for preserving practical uniformity of speed between a inotor and a machine driven thereby.

The present invention is particularly designed for use in connection with graphephones, or apparatus for recording and reproducing speech and other sounds, though its use is not by any means coniined thereto. In the operation of a graphophone it is desirable that iiuctuations in the speed of the motor should not be transmitted to the graphophone, but that the main shaft of the latter shouldrotate at a uniform maximum speed. This is of the utmost importance in recording and reproducing` musical sounds, the pitch of the sound being effected directly by variations in the speed of the motor.

The regulator hereinafter described is so contrived that the shaft of the graphophone or other device cannot be driven beyond a certain maximum speed, and that as soon. as such limit is reached, no matter to what extent the speed of the motor maybe increased that of the device driven thereby is not af fected.

The regulator comprises two disks set face to face in frictional contact, one disk being connected with the driving-] mlley, which receives motion from the motor, the other be.- i'ng connected with and adapted to rotate the pulley which transmits motion to the machine to be driven. Contact is maintained between these disks by the pressure of a spring, so that normally one disk is driven by and at the same speed as the other. Two weighted arms are fulcrumed in standards carried by and rotating with the shaft on which the disks and pulleys are mounted, and the arms are adapted to take the pressure of the spring off the disks Whenever, by reason of an abnormal increase in the speed of the motor, the centrifugal force developed is sufiicient to cause the weights to separate.

When this happens, the driving-disk will slip past the driven disk, the speed of the latter being thus checked and kept at the predetermined rate. The pressure of the spring can be adjusted to the maximum limit of speed at any desired number of revolutions per minute.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, Figure I is a side elevation of the regulator; Fig. II, a longitudinal vertical section of the same; Fig. III, an end elevation; and Fig. IV, a vertical crosssection on line IV, Fig. I, in elevation, looking to the left.

The main sha-ft A ol the regulator is journaled in uprights or standards B and carries a loose pulley C, to Which motion is communicated from the motor. The said shaft A also carries a fast pulley E, from which motion is transmitted to the machine to bev driven. The motion is conveyed from pulley C to pulley E through the two disks F G. Disk F is attached to or made in one piece with pulley C and rotates therewith. Disk G is mounted on shaft A and can move lengthwise thereof, but transmits its rotary motion thereto through a small pin 2, attached to the shaft and taking into a notch in said disk. One of the disks has a facing 3 of friction material-such as leatheroid-so that when the disks are pressed together disk G will be rotated by disk F. Both disks may have a facing of leatheroid or like material, if desired. The contact of the disks F and G is maintained by a spiral spring II, which bears at one end against a collar ,4 and at the other against a collar 5, the latter being carried by a sleeve G, which loosely surrounds shaft A. Collar 5 has pins 7, which pass loosely through holes in a hub K and make contact With the ends of lever-arms Il, which engage in grooves in a loose collar S, the latter bearing directly against the disk G. Disk G is thus normally pressed against disk F by the pressure of spring I-I.

The hub K, which is fast on shaft A, earries standards or arms M, to which the levers L are fulorumed at 9. To the ends of the horizontal arms of levers L are attached weights N, and as the other ends of said levers are connected, as already described, with the IOO collar 8, that bears against disk G, it is obvious that when the weights move outward or away from the shaft they move said collar away from said disk and relieve the latter of the pressure of spring H.

Collar 4, against which spring H bears, has a threaded periphery and screws into a threaded nut 12, being secured to shaft A by a clamp-screw 13. To adjust the pressure of the spring, screw 13 is loosened and nut 12 turned to move collar 4 toward or away from it, according as it is desired to increase ordecrease the pressure of the spring.

Between the two disks F G is placed a washer or pad 14; of absorbent material-such as cloth-to absorb any oil that may escape from the bearing of the loose pulley O.

The operation of the device will be readily understood. Supposing the mot-or to be operating below the normal speed, the spring H presses disk G against disk F, by which G is rotated, the motion of disk G beingcommunicated to shaft A (and consequently to pulley E, carried thereby) through the pin 2. Should the speed of shaft A be increased to such an extent that. the centrifugal force developed is suticient to cause weights N to move away from the shaft, overcoming the force of the spring H, the collar 8 will be withdrawn from contactfwith disk G and the latter relieved of its pressure. Consequently disk F will have a tendency to slip past disk G, the speed of the latter being thus checked,

and the speed of shaft A and pulley E cannot exceed the predetermined limit.

The regulator, of course, acts only to reduce the speed and prevent its exceeding a certain limit, and not to increase the motion transmitted when that of the motor falls below the normal. Therefore, to secure practically uniform speed, the pressure of the spring should be so adjusted as to be balanced by the centrifugal force imparted to the weighted arms at a rate of speed somewhat lower than that at which the motor would ordinarily be driven. Thus, as the motion of the motor is not likely to fall below such rate, and as at any higher rate the action of the Weighted arms would relieve the pressure of the spring, a practically-uniform rate of movement may be given to the graphophone or other device driven by the motor.

It is obvious that the invention is not limited to the precise forms, arrangements, and proportions of the Various parts herein shown and described, but that th ese may be Varied without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having now fully described my said invention, What I claim isv 1. In a speed-regulator, the combination of a shaft, a loose pulley thereon, another pulley fast on said shaft, two friction-disks, one rigidly connected with said loose pulley, the other connected with said shaft by a pin and notch, so as to be movable toward and away from the first disk, a hub fast on said shaft, governor-arms pivoted thereto and connected at their inner end with a loose collar which bears against said, movable friction-disk, and a spring exerting@ pressure against said collar through pins passing loosely through said hub, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the shaft, the disks mounted thereon, the spring for keeping said disks in contact, the Weighted lever-arms, and an adjustable collar surrounding said shaft, against which one end of said spring bears, whereby its pressure may be increased or diminished, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof l have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. v

CHARLES S. TAINTER.

Witnesses:

PHILIP MAURO, C. J. HEDRICK. 

